Apparatus for handling solid material from furnaces



F. B. ALLEN Y April 2, 1929.

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLID MATERIAL FROM FURNACES 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Sept. 11, 1924 @QZQQQZPA INV NTOR APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLID MATERIAL FROM FURNACES Original Filed Sept. 11. 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR E 3, ,4 31m Eva,

p i 1929- F. B. ALLE N 1,707,342-

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLID MATERIAL FRO] FUXiNAGES ofiginal Filed sew..- 11', 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 BY A April 2, 1929.

F.- B. ALLEN APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLID MATERIAL FROM FURNACES Original Filed Sept. 11, 1924 4 Sheets-Sheet :7 INV%TOE :5 1

BY I [J 7 ATTZNEY'S.

Puma Apr. 2;;1929r- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK B. ALLEN, OF LOWER MARION TOWNSHIP, MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PENNSYL:

VANIA, ASSIGNOB, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE ALLEN-SHERIAN-HOI'I' COI- PANY, OI PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING SOLID MATERIAL FROM FURNACES.

Application filed September 11, 1924, Serial No. 737,058. Renewed June 10, 1028.

This invention pertains to the handling of ash and other solids resulting from the co nbustion of fuel and is particularly concerned with the provision of new and improved 5 methods of and means for .handling the incombustible residues from the combustion of powdered fuel.

It also relates to the construction of apparatus for receiving ash and other solids discharged from a powdered fuel burning furnace and removing the same to a place of disposal by fluid means.

It further relates to the construction of apparatus for receiving ash and other incoml bustible residues of various sizes from a fuel burning furnace, for separating such solid materials into large and small sizes and reserving the former for crushing in, or manual removal from, the apparatus and for conducting the small sized materials to a place of disposal by fiuidmeans.

It also relates to the combination with-a 'fuel burning furnace and a fluid means for removing to a place of disposal the ash and other solid material discharged from such afurnace, of means for automatically sepa- I rating from the said solid material, as it falls from the furnace, the material which is too coarse to be" removed to .a place of disposal by the said fluid means and for retaining such material until it is manually removed or for assisting in breaking up such material into sizes'which may be handled by the said fluid means.

incombustible residues from combustion are dischargedto a plane therebelow. It is also applicable alike to such devices whether they are equipped with ash hoppers'to retain: the

products of combustion or periodical discharge, or. are constructed to discharge the incombustible residues from combustion, in-

cluding ash slagrand similar substances, continuously t ere om. -As illustrative of the various types of fuel burning dvicesfwith It still further relates to new and improved. apparatus and methods involving fluid under which my invention may be utilized, I may mention as fired furnaces carrgung ore dust, sawdust urmng furnaces an stoker fired furnaces, and in general any furnace where the residues from combustion and all solid materials are discharged in the form of large and small pieces. In whatever connection my invention is employed, however, the apparatus and means may be similarly conco structed and may operate in substantially the same .ma er and the method may be practiced simi arly with some variations.

In its more limited aspects, my invention is es ecially adapted to use with powdered 65 fuel urning furnaces. Accordingly, I have elected to set forth my invention as employed with such a furnace but in so doing, I do not wish to be understood as limiting my invention to such a furnace.

Iowdered fuel burning furnaces are usually constructed witha combustion chamber surrounding the flame, the bottom wall of which has discharge openings to permit removal of the solid products of combustion. In some instances the bottom art of the com bustion chamber is suitably s ape'd and. constructed to serve as a hopper in which the solid products of combustion-may accumulate and from which they may be withdrawn s0 periodically. It is this general type of fur nace structure which I have elected to show in connection with the herein described embodiment of my invention, but I do not limit my invention to use with such furnace and hopper structure since it may obviously be emp oyed with other furnace structure without ho pers.

. Pre erably my invention comprises the construction of a closed chamber in combination with a combustion chamber having a bottom discharge opening, self cleaning means in the closed chamber for automatically sizing the solid material discharged from the combustion chamber, i. e., separat- .96 im; the coarse material or large pieces of the incombustible residues from combustion or ash from the more finely divided parts of this material, and fluid means for removing the properly sized solid materialor ash to a place. of disposal. Various modifications of iny invention are described. hereinafter and. are illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Fi' ure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a rnace, of the class described, constructed in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

v Figure 3 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

, Figure 4Eis a vertical sectional view similar to Fig. 2 but showing a modified form of conduit, and

Figure 5 is a longitudinal vertical section taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Referring to Figs l, 2 and 3, reference numeral 1 indicates, as an entirety, a combustion chamber for a powdered fuel burning furnace, the bottom wall 2 of which chamber is provided with one or more discharge opencombustion, such as ash, sla

ings 3 through which solid residues from etc., may be discharged. For each opening 3 a movable closure 4 is provided, the closure here illustrated consisting ofa door mounted to run on the top of rollers 5 and to be guidedby guide strips 6, the rollers and strips being carried by steel members 7 which extend longitudinally of the furnace 1 and on opposite sides of the openings 3; In the furnace illustrated a. cast iron frame 8 is carried by the side members 7 and partially supports furnace through its frame members 8 or sidethe lining material 9 of the side walls of the chamber 1 and forms the'outlines of the dis charge opening 3. The closure or door 4 for each opening is preferably actuated into and out of closed position, with respect to the openings 3, by means of a rod 10 connected to a piston (not shown) which piston may be reciprocated in a cylinder (not shown), therod 10 being connected to the door 4 by any suitable means, for example, by a bracket 11.

A closed chamber 12 is located beneath and surrounds one or more openings 3. This chamber is formed by upright side walls 13 and 14 and end walls 15, all of which have substantially air tight connections with the members 7, or otherwise, and similar connections with bottom wall 16, so as to-prevent the passage of any substantial amount-of air into this chamber and thence into the combustion chamber 1. The bottom wall '16 of the combustion chamber may be variously formed but as illustrated in these figures it is formed by the floor of the furnace-house structure and contains a conduit 26 adapted to receive solid material discharged through the openings 3 and to conduct'the same to a placeof disposal. The wall 13 of the chamber 12 is, as illustrated, substantially vertical and is provided near its upper edge with hand-holes 18 equipped with suitable covers 18 which are so located that bars, scrapers or other'tools may be inserted therethrough to dislodge slag or other solid residues from combustion which have adhered to the side walls of the combustion chamber. Near the lower edges of the walls 13 similar handholes 18 equipped with covers 18 are provided to permit the entry of hoes or scrapers used to draw the residues of combustion into the conduit. The end walls 15 of'the closed chamber 12 may be of any desired form but are preferably formed substantially, as

of access or entry into the interior of the chamber 12.

Within the chamber 12 and inclined from a point closely adjacent to the top of wall 13 to a point below the openings 14 I have provided an inclined grate, 20 composed of spaced parallel bars 21 held in assembled relation by through rods 22, the grate 20 ex tending completely across the vertical projection of each opening 3. At the lower end of inclined grate 2O provide a similar suitably reinforced grate 23 composed of spaced parallel bars 21' and rods 22, the grate 23 being suitably supported as by an I-beam 24 which is carried by the end walls 15 of the chamber, and by a bar 25 secured to the inclined side walls 14". The grate 20 is suitably secured to the wall 13 and supported at its lower end by the grate 23 to which it may be connected in any desired manner.

.Grate 23 is reinforced to withstand the breaking of the solid materials thereon without removing the same from the chamber. Itmay be horizontally disposed as shown or otherwise disposed provided it serves to retain the large pieces or coarse material consisting of ash, etc. until they are removed or broken and passed therethrough.

In the bottom wall 16 of the closed chamber 12. I provide a conduit 26 open to the air. as at 26, and having one or more openings 27 beneath each opening 3 in wall 2. These openings 27 may be variously formed, but in the construction illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, the openings are cut in the top of the conduit 26 and a collar 28 rests on the conduit with flanges 28 depending therefrom into the opening 27, the flanges 28 being suitably shaped so that they conform to the inner contour of the conduit 26 without extending into the interior of the conduit and do not form projections which might obstruct the free passage of material through the conduit. The floor above conduit 26 may be variously shaped about the openings 27 but I as illustrated, I may provide a conicalmetal wall '30 extending through the floor 16 and having an outwardly extending flange 31 which rests on the collar 28. 32 indicates a suitable cover to tit over the hole in the floor leading down to the opening 27 and the conduit 26. 33 indicates diagrammaticaliy jets provided at one or more spaced intervals along conduit 26 from which steam or other fluid, under pressure, may be' discharged into the conduit to draw material from chamber 12 and force it through the conduit to a place of disposal.

In operating the structure just described, the closure 4 is withdrawn to permit accumulations of ash and similar solid residues from combustion to be discharged from the bottom openin 3 of the combustion chamber 1.

This material in falling strikes on the selfcleaning grate 20 which, without clogging, permits the fi'nely divided material to pass freely therethrough and automatically separates the larger pieces of solid material anddirects them to the grate '23 where they are retained until they are mechanically or manually crushed or broken up on the grate 23 so asto pass therethrough', or removed from the closed chamber 12 through opening 14. The spaces between the bars 21and' 21 of the grates 20 and 23 are ofi such'size that material passingtherethrough can be conveniently and expeditiously carried by the conduit 26. As the finely divided material passes through the rates 20 and 23 it passes into the openings 2 of the conduit 26 (the covers 32 having been removed) and isfcarried along through the conduit by rents set u therein by the discharge) of steam or other uid under high pressure throu h the nozzles or jets 33, and as it passes t e nozzles it is also driven'along by the force'of the fluid.

It will be obvious to those, skilled-in the art that since the chamber 12 is substantially air tight, the door 4 may be moved into open position with respect to the opening'3 and,

solid material discharged from the chamber 1 without causing or permitting. the passage of considerable 'quantltiesof air or gas into the combustion chamber and furthermore that since the jets 38 are located, as described, the covers 32 may be removed from the openings 27 ofthe conduit 26 and solid material discharged therethrough also without causmg or permitting anyair to enter the combustion chamber. The efiiciency of the fur-' nace is thus not interfered with noticeably during removal of the residues of combustion from the furnace and all danger of ex tinguishing the flames by sudden rushof air into the'combustion chamber at such time is avoided.

Furthermore it will be obvious that due to air clurof disposal;

ly separates the large pieces of solid material, which cannot be-"conveniently handled by the conduit 26, from the finely divided material which can readily pass through the conduit the latter materialmay .be quickly conducted to a place of disposal without any danger ofclogging or stoppage of the con- (luit. The large particles which collect on the reinforced grate: 23 can be pulverized mechanically or manually in the chamber, passed through the grate 23 andgthen removed through the conduit 26,01 removed through the openings 14;? and then either crushed and returned to the closed chamber 12 or conducted directly to a .place of disposal without being broken up. When the large pieces are being manually broken up on grate 23 or removed through openings 14, the doors 4 should first be closed to exelude air from the combustion chambers 1.

AlthoughyI have mentioned jets 33 as being steam jets, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that I might equally wellemploy other gases under pressure, such fer example as air.

In Figs. 4 and 5 I have illustrated amodified form of my invention in which a combustion chamber similar to that shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, is provided with a'bottomwall 2 and one or more discharge openings 3 about each of which openings 3v :1

frame 8 is located which is carried in part by side members 7-updn which are 'mounted" rollers 5 and guide sti'i'ps 6 to serve as a rolling track for a closure or door 4 which cooperates with the frame 8 to open and close the openings 3. j

A closed chamber 12, similar to that heretofore described, is shown in these figures and y isprovided with an inclined self clean ng grate 20and a horizontal grate 23, both substantially as described above, The bottom wall of the chamber 12, which is also preferably formed by thefloor of the'furnace-house, is provided with a conduit 35 havingan opening 36 in its top wall 37 to receive finely divided solid material which passes from the combustion chamber throughfthe grates 20 and 23. This conduit 35 is adapted for'use with a fluid such as water, and is provided with one or more nozzles38 suitably disposed to direct fluid under pressure against solid material falling through the opening 36 and to carry thesame along the conduit to a place In the form shown this conduit 35 may be substantially trough shaped and althou h here shown as having the bottom wall shghtl inclined, it may have a substanpassing from the various combustion chambers to the place of disposal.

It will be observed that in the modification shown in Figs. 4 and 5 substantially all possibility of leakage of air and other gases in harmful quantities into the combustion chamber has been eliminated and that solid material may be discharged from the combustion chamber and conducted away to a place of disposal without any interruption whatever to the operation of the furnace.

Havin thus described my invention so that those skilled in the art may practice the same, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is defined in what is claimed, it being understood that changes or modifications in the illustrated and described structures which do not amount to invention are comprehended sure for, the said opening, an inclined'gratc' beneath the opening, a reinforced grate at the lower end of the inclined grate, the said chamber having an opening thereinto adjacent to and above the last said grate and provided with a movable closure, and fluid means for removing from the chamber solid material passing through said grates.

2. In combination with a fuel burning furnace having a bottom opening, a closed chamber beneath the said opening, a movable closure for the said opening, an inclined grate beneath the opening, areinforced grate at the lower end of the inclined grate, the said chamher having an opening thereinto adjacent to and above the last said grate and provided .with a movable closure and a conduit having top openings located beneath the grates an being provided with fiuid means to conduct solid material passing through the said grates to a place of disposal.

3. In combination with a fuel burning furnace having a bottom opening, a closed chamber beneath the said opening, a movable closure for the said opening, an inclined grate beneath the o ening, a grate at the lower end 6 of the incline grate, the said chamber having an opening thereinto adjacent to and above the last said grate and provided Witha movable closure, a conduit beneath the grates adapted to receive material passing throu h the grates and means in the conduit .for discharging fluid under pressure into the conduit to remove from the conduit said solid material enterin the conduit through the grates.

4. In com ination with a fuel burning furnace having a bottom discharge opening, a movable closure for the said opening, a closed chamber surrounding said 0 ening and having an o ening in one side we 1 provided with a movab e closure, an inclined grate beneath the first said opening, a horizontal grate at the lower end of the inclined grate and adjacent to and below the said opening in the chamber side wall and fluid means for removin solid material from the closed chamber after it has passed through the said grates.

5. In combination, a hopper having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a movable closure for the said opening adapted to permit the discharge at one time through the openin of substantially all the ash retained in the opper by the closure, a chamber beneath the said opening and communicating with the hopper through the o enings, the chamber having walls connecte to the ho per, means disposed in the chamber in tie path of solid material discharged through the said opening for automatically retaining the larger pieces of the solid material and for permitting the finer material to pass therethrough substantially without obstruction and regardless of the amount of ash discharged through the opening.

6. Ash handling apparatus comprising an ash receptacle in air tight communication with a furnace combustion chamber and having a dischar e opening in its lower portion, a closed cham er about the discharge opening communicating therewith through the opening and having walls connected with the receptacle, a grate inclined to the perpendicular, positioned within the chamber in the path of ash discharged through said. opening and adapted to screen the ash, means within the chamber for receiving the ash which does not pass through the grate and means for removing from the chamber without substantial admission of air the ash which passes through the grate. I

7. Ash handling apparatus comprising an ash receptacle in air tight communication with a furnace combustion chamber and having a discharge opening in its lower portion, a closed chamber about the discharge opening communicating therewith through the opening and having walls connected with the receptacle, a grateinclined to perpendicular positioned within the chamber beneath the opening and adapted to screen the ash, a second grate for receiving the ash which does not pass through the first grate and means for removing from the chamber without substantial admission of air the .ash which falls through the grate.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature this fourth day of September, 1924.

FRANK B. ALLEN. 

